Monday, October 12, 2015

Seeking peace in Syria

US efforts to train
fighters from rebel groups opposed to Syria's current government have
failed;

Russia has employed
aircraft and cruise missile against ISIS;

US munitions,
intended for rebel groups, appear to have fallen into the wrong hands;

ISIS' grip on
significant portions of Syria and Iraq remains strong in spite of an extensive
bombing campaign by the US and its allies that in the last year exceeded
the amount of ordnance dropped by air in either Iraq or Afghanistan during
a five-year period.

In sum, efforts both to displace Assad have stalled
and to eliminate ISIS as a major force in the Middle East have failed. Indeed, the
US and its allies appear to be achieving results that are the opposite of their
goals: instead of contributing to the establishment of peace, well-intentioned
but misdirected efforts are exacerbating violence, instability, and harming
thousands.

Concerned individuals and groups can contribute to building
peace in Syria and the Middle East by advocating that governments adopt
policies and programs designed to bring security and stability, diminish
violence, and improve the quality of life for people who might otherwise join
the flood tide of Middle Eastern refugees.

Among the positive actions that the US and its
allies might take in the Middle East are:

(1)Weighing
non-combatant safety and security more heavily in decisions to authorize
airstrikes (even persons opposed to any use of military force should be able to
support this diminution of violence);

(2)Creating
a Syrian "no fly" zone to limit the ability of Assad's regime to harm
or intimidate its citizens;

(3)Debunking
the myth that better training or arms will compensate for the widespread
corruption and lack of commitment among Iraqi security forces;

(4)Adequately
funding and safeguarding refugee camps in and around Syria;

(5)Supporting
quality of life and self-determination efforts of people in the Middle East.

Advocating these or other moves need not presume
either the expertise or prerogative to prescribe solutions. Instead, concerned individuals
and groups can best function as catalysts who try to keep governments
energetically focused on building secure, stable communities, diminishing
violence, and improving people's quality of life.